Death Doesn't Discriminate
by Sonya-Heather-DeVito
Summary: Harry visits a Muggle toy store and realizes something which leads him to the Riddle Manor graveyard, to seek a much-needed apology.


_A/N: Written for The Houses Competition Year 4. I do not own Harry Potter; it solely belongs to J.K. Rowling!_

_House: Ravenclaw_

_Year: Prefect_

_Category: Standard_

_Prompt: [Object] Baby Toy_

_Word Count: 1344 (As of google docs)_

* * *

Harry smiled widely as he entered the Muggle Toy Store - 'Baby Bugs and Butterflies'. It was everything he had imagined and so much more. Yes, this was the place - he was sure that he'd find an appropriate gift for Teddy here.

It was New Year's Eve; Harry knew that he was _way_ too late with his Christmas present, but both Molly and Andromeda had ensured him that Teddy wouldn't mind. It might have been because the one-year-old wouldn't remember it, or because of how much the little one loved and adored his godfather. Still, Harry wanted to repay Teddy for not spending enough time with him. He owed his godson that much, thus the sudden shopping spree in Muggle London with Hermione in tow.

"Over there, Harry."

He looked in the direction Hermione was pointing in and nodded. They strode forward and he was surprised when he found the whole aisle filled with plush toys of varying sizes and colours. There were so many different toys - even Dudley hadn't had this many. He moved to where Hermione was checking the toys and making guesses as to which one would Teddy like.

"How about this one?" Hermione asked as Harry came beside her. She was holding a koala plushie, knowing how much the young Metamorphmagus loved Koalas, since he had taken an instant liking to the animal after his first trip to the Muggle zoo. It was nice, Harry presumed, but it wasn't what he was looking for. He moved further, his eyes searching for that perfect gift for his godson, when his eyes suddenly caught onto something and he smiled widely - the biggest grin to light up his face since the war had been won. His grin faltered though when he his eyes landed on a stuffed-snake toy towards the back of the shelf just like that. Seeing the snake eerily reminded him of the eleven-year-old boy of Wool's Orphanage.

He picked the other toys - a wolf, a stag, and a dog respectively, and moved back to where Hermione was - his eyes not leaving the snake plushie, and his heart heavy with guilt.

"What do you think of them?" Harry asked Hermione, who was still confused and muttering under her breath like she usually did. He saw her turn around and look at the toys in his hands with unreadable expressions. Harry started feeling nervous when she didn't reply for some moments; he'd thought that his idea was stupid. He was just about to turn and put the toys back when her voice stopped her.

"It's perfect, Harry!" Hermione whispered. He gave a relieved smile at her positive response, and passed the toys to her to get them all packed. It didn't take them long to pay for the plushies and get finished with their shopping, and they finally started walking out of the baby store.

"'Mione?"

"Yeah, Harry?"

He saw Hermione turn around when she realized that he was not walking beside her anymore. Harry gave an awkward smile with his hands pocketed deep into his heavy coat - a nervous habit he'd acquired when he wanted to say something but was hesitant to talk about.

"I wanted to..." he stumbled to find an appropriate reason, but Hermione cut him off.

"It's okay, Harry. Take your time. But remember to be back by eight, okay?" Hermione spoke with an understanding smile.

"Thanks, 'Mione," Harry spoke gratefully; he was thankful that she understood him so well. "And I'll be back soon."

Hermione kissed him lightly on the cheek and started walking towards the Leaky Cauldron where she'd decided to meet Ron. When Harry was sure that Hermione was out of sight, he went back to the toy shop.

* * *

The atmosphere of the graveyard was dark and gloomy and chilly, just as Harry's inner thoughts were. The Riddle Manor cemetery looked as dreary as Harry had seen it the last time.

He had been thinking over and over if coming here in the first place was a good decision, because the last time he'd come here, he'd lost a dear friend - Cedric. His death had left a deep and irreversible wound on Harry. But he wouldn't leave until he did what he'd come for.

Harry moved further to where he assumed _his _grave laid. He had been the one who had insisted to bury whatever was left of Voldemort, in the Riddle Manor's graveyard. It had been Harry who'd decided to give Voldemort a respectful farewell from the mortal world; it had been Harry who'd realised that Voldemort had done many dark, but great things - things no other wizard would even dare to dream about.

Harry had realised that enemy or not, death treated everyone equally and spared no one.

He reached his destination and there lay the Dark Lord - nothing but crumbled to dust and ashes, as all other living beings do. His grave lay far away from that of his father and grandparents; not surprising in the least. Nearing the dusted grave, Harry took out something from his robe pockets, and kneeled in front of it, not caring about getting his robes dirty. It was a shrunken, green-coloured snake plushie that he'd found while looking for Teddy's present earlier that day. He unshrunk the toy and looked at the stone which read -

'_TOM MARVOLO RIDDLE_

_31st Dec 1926 - 2nd May 1998'_

There were no kind words like 'in the loving memory of', nor any nice things. Just his name and the dates. It broke Harry's heart a little, perhaps because of how much the date inscribed on the stone taunted him. '_2nd May 1998' _\- others would celebrate it as the day that good had won over evil; Harry though, would always be reminded that he'd killed someone.

"I don't know what I'm doing here or the reason I'm feeling guilty for killing you, I just know that I can't get rid of this feeling in my chest. Maybe that's why I'm here," Harry spoke with a bit of hope in his heart that somewhere Tom was listening to him.

"I can't feel the happiness of winning the war, I can't even though I've tried. It's just all restlessness and exhaustion clenching around my gut. I don't know why I'm telling this to _you_ of all people. But I got something for you." Harry put the unshrunk snake-plushie on the grave. He'd found it tossed aside, thrown into a corner, and he was immediately reminded of his and Tom's similar childhoods - no one to love them, no one to care for them, no one to look up to. Both had lost their childhoods to cruelty at the hands of Muggles, and the darkness that constantly surrounded their lives. Harry though, had found his sense of purpose and happiness in his friends and family, but Tom had been rejected by his own father. How could he have possibly won against darkness then?

"I think now I know why I'm here. I think I know why I'm talking to your grave like a lunatic. You were the only person who inspired me, because I _never _wanted to be anything like you. I looked at you and saw everything that I could have been had I chosen the dark path," Harry looked deeply at the toy snake and continued, "I looked up to you and tried my best to avoid the mistakes that you'd made."

He sighed heavily and sat there for a few minutes - the silence around him was comforting, giving him the chance to compose himself again.

"I'm sorry, Tom," he finally, tears on the verge of leaving his emerald-eyes. "No child should have endured a childhood that you had lived. I'm so sorry."

Harry picked up his holly wand and new words appeared on the headstone:

'_In memory of_

_TOM MARVOLO RIDDLE:_

_The boy who was lost to darkness_

_31st Dec 1926 - 2nd May 1998'_

With one final look at the toy-snake, Harry whirled around and left the graveyard. He felt light-hearted after the apology. Harry truly hoped that Tom would appreciate his first birthday present.


End file.
